Harinezumi No Naku Koro Ni Mukashi
by pantedgieQueen13
Summary: If you aren't familiar with Higurashi,I suggest you watch even just one episode each of Kai and the first season,all on youtube,to get the gist.When the Hedgehogs Cry! M for content. Takes place in 06,but better.
1. Olden Times Opening

Harinezumi No Naku Koro Ni: Mukashi

_Behind where I looked back _

_(who's there in the front)?_

_I raised my nails in the dark_

_(and slashed the night)._

_Raindrops become droplets of blood and drip down the throat._

_If you don't have a place to go back to…_

…_then stop here on my finger._

_I'll take you away along with that finger._

_To the unopenable forest where cicadas cry._

_You can't turn back anymore._


	2. In The Hedges Chapter

**Hejji No**

_Alone, so alone._

_And then a voice, cackling, behind me, rising._

"_You lose."_

_And then…I die._

_30 May, 2020 (by the human calendar)_

The Hikari no Megami Festival in Soleana. Apparently, it's the event of the year. That's what drew my friends to it. A unique brand of fireworks that was 50% less harmful to the atmosphere, delicious imported food from the world over, wonderful fashion sense, and the need to get away from it all described this particular festival.

My friends were _thrilled_.

"C'mon, Sonic," Tails and Amy were on either side of me, stalking me, I assumed. I had slowed to a walk at the entrance of the Tornado, Tails' beloved biplane, but now I regretted stopping.

"This again? C'mon, guys. I've made up my mind not to go."

"You _have_ to, Sonic!" Amy pleaded with me, her eyes full of emotion. "Think of the fireworks! And Princess Cosmo, the heir to the throne of Soleana, will be there, too! You know, she doesn't leave the palace much."

"Not to mention four different kinds of chilidog," Tails added, appealing to my appetite, which spiked immediately when I remembered I hadn't eaten for several hours. However, I was vehement in my decision.

"I already told you all that I'm _not_ going!" I answered firmly with enough anger for them to get the message. My young friends whined in protest, but it was my older friend Knuckles the Echidna who understood me, perhaps more than I wanted, because he teased:

"Leave him alone, you two. Sonic doesn't want to go because he's afraid of water."

Ugh. Though it was true, I wondered why Knuckles had to say it like I was a wuss, and I turned a shade of pink. Sonic the Hedgehog—afraid of a little water?

Yes, yes I was. Soleana, the beautiful white marble town of royalty, was paved with both streets _and_ canals. On any day but the Hikari no Megami, the whole city stank of water going bad, and garbage. Apparently, on the day of the Festival, flowers are thrown into the canals to greatly improve the smell. However, I was concerned at the depth of said canals, and not the smell. Which, aside from being unpleasant, didn't bother me as much as it should have.

Since I was now seventeen years of age, that meant that Tails was ten, Amy was fourteen, and Knuckles was eighteen. I probably should introduce them all quickly for you.

Miles "Tails" Prower is a golden-furred two tailed fox. We've been friends and brothers since I can remember, and have had all kinds of crazy, dangerous, and whacky adventures side-by-side. He's a genius, but years of being bullied for that has made him a little shy to show his smarts. His favorite food is mint candy, and he'll do nearly anything for it.

Amy Rose is a pink hedgehog who has had a crush on me since we were kids. Although she's backed off her pouncing, two years ago, she'd be all over me every time she saw me. She's a good warrior, wielding her piko-piko hammer with a confidence she probably learned from me, which does make me worry occasionally. Like Tails, I consider her my sister—one of my closest friends. _Her_ favorite food is soft serve ice cream, which I love teasing her about on occasion.

Knuckles the echidna is the Guardian of Angel Island. He can be a bit dense on the brains sometimes, and he's short on temper, which makes him fun to tease. We've been friendly rivals for quite a while now, though we try to stay out of each other's lives as we perform our different duties. His favorite food is grapes, which are sort of good, I suppose. I like throwing the pits at him.

Finally, there's me. Of course, you should know me. Sonic the Hedgehog's the name, speed's my game. And heroics. But, y'know, that was given. I'm superfast, and I have quite a bit of strength when I can put my mind to it. Usually, because of my superpower, I'm hypoglycemic, which is a fancy word for "low sugar levels." It's okay with me. The worst is my hydrophobia, which Knuckles likes to make fun of constantly.

"Shut up, Knuckles," I threatened, shy in my embarrassment. Amy armed herself with her hammer and rose it over her head. Knuckles backed off.

"At least stop by," Tails suggested after some silence.

I took a deep breath, and turned around to look at them. "Okay," I conceded. "I'll stop by to watch the Princess' boat. And maybe I'll stick around for a chilidog or two."

"YAY!" The kids were ecstatic, hugging me until I couldn't breathe anymore. Knuckles looked smug with his victory, and I assumed he had something of a nasty joke planned for that night.

_4 June, 2020_

The night of the Hikari no Megami Festival found Solena full to bursting with people. I found myself weaving through massive crowds of people, tasting food here and there when I could. I had tried all four types of chilidog Tails had said would be there, each with a different spicy chili gracing its top, before I found them.

The three had found a good viewing spot for the entrance of the Princess Cosmo's boat on top of one of the flat-roofed houses common in Soleana. I used an awning to get up to where they were, and found them splitting a bag of kettlecorn, waiting for me, and the princess.

Once or twice, Knuckles tried to push me off the building's precarious edge (which, normally, would not alarm me in the slightest,) thus causing me to totter towards the water, which made me squeak in quite the unmanly way. This generated laughter from the three, and, indeed, anyone who heard.

Finally, just as the crescent moon was rising, the Princess' boat came along.

It was a marvelous white, trimmed with gold and real sapphires. Seven dancers in butter yellow dresses and strange, bird-like hair clips paraded the floor below, while Princess Cosmo, on one of the upper decks, alternated between smiling and waving, like a perfect sovereign should do.

Princess Cosmo looked, to me, no older than Tails. To think her coronation would be soon! I couldn't imagine being a King at that age! Or being asked to marry…bleck.

Cosmo was a Seedrian, a rare species. They were so rare, in fact, that all Seedrians now alive or in existence here were some relation to the Royal Family here in Soleana. She had green, leaf-like hair that drifted down past her shoulders and touched her upper back. She had a red jewel on her chest, and two blooming flowers on either side of her head. Her dress looked like a white flower about to bloom, still covered by its leaf. And her eyes, well…I only knew from being told that they were as blue as I was. Maybe bluer.

There were cheers from the crowd as Cosmo stepped daintily (with the help of her maids, cloaked in green with faces obscured) onto a great floating platform with the emblem of Soleana, with looked like two great white snakes had swirled up from the base.

Shyly, Cosmo took the flaming candle from one of her maids and bowed before the great statue. Her voice, as if amplified by the flames she held burning before her eyes, boomed over the whole entire city. Yet, Tails, Amy, Knuckles, and I still jumped from rooftop to rooftop to get closer to her, seeing if we could get a better look.

"We give thanks to the blessed flames. May we always continue to have peace." Cosmo's voice was soft and fluent, beautiful in its innocence. Something in me stirred with her words, though I felt no affinity to her, or the theology of this canal city. "Daughter of Solaris, god of the sun, guide and watch over us

with your eternal burning flame. May it give life and light to all who see it." By now, the gang and I had found better seats. We settled in, uneasy with excitement that could burst our bodies as Cosmo walked, alone, towards the great statue. With ceremonial grace only a princess could posses, the girl touched her candle to the base of the statue.

As the clocks all over town rung midnight, the statue went up in flames, causing a great amount of awed noise from the crowd (myself and company included.) Great fireworks as blue as Cosmo's eyes created great booms in the night, amidst cheers and laughter, children below my dangling feet chasing mechanical toys through the streets and shouting 'good morning' to each other and to all they passed. Cosmo was waving to her people again, and I found myself shouting back to about one thousand 'good morning's from children and adults alike.

Despite my refusal to come, at first, I found I had—quite by accident, mind you—enjoyed myself!

_5 June 2020_

"Man, that was awesome!" Knuckles half-shouted as we walked back to the hotel where the three had rented a room for the night, amidst several thousand others who were not part of the cleanup crew, retiring as well. There were sudden cheers and shouts of joy as the Princess' boat rode on through the night back towards the palace, Cosmo calling goodbyes galore to thousands of people she'd never met personally.

"It sure was!" Amy agreed. "Aren't you glad you came, Sonic?"

"Hmm? Oh!" I had been thinking about the feelings that had stirred in me while listening to Cosmo's speech, and trying to sort them out. I guess I was as zoned out as Tails was, walking tiredly beside me, leaning on my shoulder from time to time. In response, I put my arm around his shoulder and roped him in, all brotherly love. "Yeah, I'm glad you guys practically _dragged_ me here to see it! It was quite the show!"

Tails agreed from against my side. "Totally," he assented, yawning. I chuckled, giving him a quick noogie.

"You're fallin asleep,"

"Are not," he protested. I grinned.

"Bed for young pilots was four hours ago. Get yer ass in bed when we get to the hotel. _Pronto_."

"Mondo unfair, Sonic," Tails mumble-whined.

Amy and Knuckles shared a laugh as we entered the hotel and retired to our room. I felt bad intruding when they had paid for the room, but was happy when the clerk promised to give us a discount. Hey, it _was_ me we were talking about, after all. It's not every night a legendary hero decides to crash at your hotel!

Tails and Amy took one bed, and I offered to sleep on the couch so Knuckles could save face. The kids went to sleep almost instantly, but Knuckles and I lay on our backs, chatting for hours.

"What are ya gonna do when the sun rises?"

"Probably head off south in search of more adventure—and Egghead. You?"

Knuckles' muted chuckling sounded frightening in the dark. "I'm just that predictable."

"Angel Island?"

"Hell yeah."

"Y'know," I yawned, concealing it pretty well, "Dunno why you guard that stupid gem. Ain't goin nowhere."

"Mmm, it might. Watching that thing is an excuse to sleep."

"Ah!" I chuckled, calling his bluff. "You don't 'guard' it, really, _do_ you?"

"Hey, my ears are always open. Speaking of shuteye, however," I heard him shifting in the bed, "I suggest you 'shut eye,' Sonic. Your job actually keeps you occupied."

"Hmph! True, lazy bones. Night."

"Night."

I listened until I heard Knuckles' low snores begin. I chuckled, figuring I'd get to sleep before his snores became louder and more annoying to have to sleep through.

I couldn't help feeling, however, a sense of unrest brewing in the pit of my stomach. I chalked it up as one-too-many chilidogs, and comfortably fell asleep before the tree chipper began its work.

_First Light, 5 June, 2020_

I had been half-asleep for a while, running without direction and without purpose. Of course I was tired. I hadn't gotten much sleep.

Suddenly, I found myself in a secluded clearing, far from Soleana. I knew, because I couldn't smell the canals, or hear the water sloshing within its containment walls. It wasn't too far a cry from nine in the morning—judging by the sun—and I felt the need to catch some real zzzs before continuing my journey home.

I walked to about the center of the clearing, and I began to feel that unease in the pit of my stomach from last night. There was nothing in my stomach—no logical explanation for my feeling this way—not now.

Something was wrong. Something was up.

I was alone. Alone, so alone. I'd never felt so isolated in all my life. I heard something behind me, sort of like the noise a whirlpool makes at its peak, only the volume seemed turned down. And then, a voice, cackling, rose behind me. Probably from that whirlpool.

The person chuckled in a dark voice. "You lose." The deep voice chuckled simply.

The next thing I knew, there was a great pain right in the center of my chest, just where my heart would be.

I was dead before my body hit the ground.

_In the hedges, I am watching._

_Watching you, waiting for you,_

_To make your false step._


	3. Eggs in a Basket Chapter

**Kago No Naka Ni Tamago**

"_I know what you want from me!" The girl cried desperately. "I can tell you right now that you'll never get it! Never!"_

_The evil man turned from his computer. "You'll regret ever saying that to me, Princess."_

"_WARNING! WARNING! ALL SYSTEMS SHUTTING DOWN! PREPARE FOR CRASH LANDING!"_

"_Oh no!" The girl sobbed._

_

* * *

_

_Midnight, 5 June 2020_

Princess Cosmo was standing beneath the burning flames of the statue, all royalty and elegance. The two pink flowers that had bloomed perfectly on her head seemed to rejoice with the rest of her as the Seedrian lifted her pale yellowish hand to the sky amidst cheers and whistlings from the massive crowd around her. People had come for miles to see the marvelous Goddess of Light Festival—known to all as the Hikari no Megami Festival. She wanted to make a good impression for all of Soleana, a town generally disliked for its stench.

Presently, a great shadow came over her head, and a great hoard of strange metallic monsters fell from the clouds above and landed upon the podium, shaking it with their weight. They stood at great attention, their guns perfectly held in their clawed hands. They looked oddly regal in the dark twilight.

"Princess, are you all right?" One of her maids chattered in her ear.

"Fine, Blossom."

"I'm Buttercup, m'lady."

"Buttercup, then." Cosmo was busy paying attention to the small craft that was now descending from the great shadow—a larger airship built for battle and other comforts. A warship. That made the young princess uneasy.

The form that now greeted their presence was a man with a distended stomach dressed in a red jacket with golden buttons, which served no purpose, and faded white fasteners across the chest. He wore black leather leggings—quite unflattering to his chubby legs-and boots from the sound of it. Instinctively, Cosmo took a step backward, unwillingly shaking with fright in her green satin slippers.

"Ah, the Princess of Soleana," the fat man introduced himself with a flourish of hand and body gestures. "You may be wondering who I am and why I'm here. I am Doctor Eggman, and I've come here to learn the secrets of the Flames from you, and to take the miracle gems that are the key to its secret—the Chaos Emeralds! Ah, I see you have one right now."

The Chaos Emerald hidden beneath the folds of her dress had now begun to glow brightly. _What a wretched time to show yourself_, thought Cosmo, looking with angry determination at Doctor Eggman, who had now extended her hand towards her.

"Now, Princess, this way, please."

Cosmo shook her head, shouting at him. "I'll _never_ go with you, you gluttonous fool! Get away from my city or you'll regret it!"

Suddenly, there was a whirlwind of blue air, and Cosmo found herself standing next to a handsome young hedgehog with cobalt blue fur. His green eyes danced against the flames as he flashed a confident smile towards the Doctor. He didn't seem at all afraid, and this fed Cosmo's confidence and bravery. The flames also seemed to react to him, as did the Emerald she was now holding.

"What she said, Egghead!" Shouted the hedgehog, cupping his hands over his mouth for further effect. "You're not getting this Chaos Emerald, or this Princess, on my watch!"

"Not that irritating hedgehog again!" The Doctor shouted. "Fire away! All of you!" This seemed to be directed at his robots, for, indeed, they did begin to fire at the hedgehog.

Her three maids, who were triplets, began to tug and pull at her sleeves. "Let's go, Princess," they urged. Cosmo, however, couldn't move a step. She was watching the blue hedgehog with admiration as he performed feats of acrobatic merit and made short work of the robot hoard which had overwhelmed her before.

A short gust of wind, and the blue hedgehog was beside her, leaning against thin air with perfect ease, arms hugging his upper body. "I think your ladies are right, Princess," his gaze hugged hers for a moment. There was a look of burning confidence within. "It's not safe here for you." He closed his eyes and was gone. Minutes later, he could be seen in front of them, the remains of a robot lying at his sneaker-clad feat.

Two of the triplets, Blossom and Bellflower, had Cosmo by either arm. The Chaos Emerald was tucked away carefully out of sight—hidden cleverly in Buttercup's sleeve. Buttercup herself was urging her sisters to tug and pull the Princess forcefully towards the boat. But, Cosmo had one more duty to perform. "I must have your name, great runner!" She implored him.

The blue hedgehog bowed. "I'm Sonic. Sonic the Hedgehog!" In another second, he was nothing but wind as the Doctor cried in despair at the destruction.

"Fire! Fire, you idiots! _**FIRE**_!"

"Your boat awaits, Princess!" Bellflower insisted, giving one final tug. Reluctantly, Cosmo went away with them, all the while looking back towards the blue lad that had saved her.

Sonic. Sonic the Hedgehog.

_Midmorning, 5 June 2020_

"Would you care for breakfast on the deck, m'lady?" Her servant, Aster, a young tom cat with black fur, asked.

"Thank you, yes. Is it ready?" Cosmo had been studying in her room, but was feeling hungry now.

"Yes, m'lady."

"Good then. You may go, Aster." Cosmo arose from the stool at her vanity and walked to the deck.

The deck, like everything else at the palace, was made of fresh white marble the color of an unhatched egg. It had a lovely domed half roof trimmed with a silvery turquoise color in case of rain or excess sun, and a small white wire table and chair for one, covered with a powder blue silk tablecloth which was replaced once a month with one of a similar or different color, as the Princess chose.

Princess Cosmo's breakfast consisted of a miniature wedding cake the size of a small pastry, served with a vanilla milkshake and a glass of lime flavored sparkling water. The deck was fenced in with great pillars that reached to her waist when she stood, decorated with white water lilies and (for the occasion) some sort of flower that looked like a burning flame, and had a great view of the city. Cosmo sipped her vanilla milkshake and watched the merry cleanup crews going about their business, using fish nets and butterfly nets to fetch the flowers from the canals. Life in Soleana had resumed as if nothing had happened that morning. And no one had seen head or tail of the lad called Sonic. It was almost as if she had never existed.

Cosmo sighed, leaning back against the wire frame of her chair. She had liked the feel of adventure she got from watching and listening to Sonic. His voice sang of triumphs for the Greater Good and many days spent running across the endless ground. All Cosmo had ever seen throughout her life was the palace and, as much fun as it was to explore the many millions of corridors, and play hide-and-seek with any servants or servants' children who would humor her, life was idle and boring for the Princess of a nothing town like Soleana.

Cosmo took a forkful of cake and put it to her lips when Bellflower, a blue Seedrian with shoulder-length hair and a dress that mimicked Cosmo's, but for its color, that was much shorter for the sake of her station, entered the deck from the inside and curtsied. "Princess, the information you wanted on Sonic the Hedgehog has just arrived." She held a light blue folder tight in her hands.

"Let me see that, Bell," Cosmo, intrigued, held out her hand for the folder. Bellflower handed it over and curtsied, leaving with a courteous 'm'lady' over her shoulder.

After Bellflower had left, Cosmo opened up the folder. Instantly, she saw a score of newspaper clippings with headlines like: "Sonic Saves the Day Again" and "Superfast Hero: Protector of All." The newspaper stories told of heroics against Doctor Eggman, and various other smaller scale crime circles, and the quotes reporters caught from Sonic—a score of "It was nothing"s and "All in a day's work"s—even these told her nothing of what she really wanted to know. She studied full-color and black and white photographs of him, caught in action and sometimes blurry, but they told her nothing, save that whatever he was doing in the photos, he had fun doing it!

"Oh!" She said in despair, throwing down the folder. "But they don't tell me about his personality at all!"

"I hardly want them to." The sudden intrusion of a voice that was not her own or her maids' startled her, so she jumped, upsetting her water in the process. "I think half of my appeal comes from my mystery. I hope you'll forgive me for scaring you? I made you upset your drink." He was smirking, sitting precariously perched on the edge of the deck, his fur strikingly beautiful in full sunlight.

"Yes, it's all right." Cosmo was both surprised and delighted from his intrusion. "Did you stay the night in Soleana?"

Sonic shrugged. "I slept on a rooftop in a nearby town, there-" he thumbed toward the west, "I came back to see if any of the vendors were still up. Guess not." He closed his eyes a moment, facing the wind.

"Yes. Most of them stay the night in the city and close down early in the morning. Most of them are gone by now. Were you looking for anything in particular?"

"Not…so particular, thank you, Princess. And I can hardly ask a sovereign to serve me, even if I don't live here." Sonic was smiling again, facing her. His eyes glowed with vivacity.

Cosmo found herself laughing though he had made a joke. He made her feel joyful. "I think, sir, I would be just like everyone else any other place on this planet," She waved her arm out to demonstrate.

"You can't escape who you are," Sonic answered, wagging his finger at her. "Find out who you are, and be that well. That's all anyone asks of you."

"What I wouldn't _give_ to travel the world like you!" Cosmo beamed, sipping her milkshake again. "I'd _love_ to see it all."

Sonic frowned a moment and looked away. "Sorry. I'm in ill temper. I think it best if I take my leave."

"Please don't go!" Cosmo pleaded.

"On my honor, I cannot refuse your orders," Sonic replied with a sigh. "But I'm afraid I'm quite out of sorts."

Cosmo giggled. "If I know the little boys in the castle well—and I think I do—then I know what's bothering you. Why else would you come back?" She laughed aloud. "You're hungry!"

Sonic flushed. "I suppose…a little. But my ill humor is due to other sources, I assure you. I-"

"Relax, adventurer. I'll have Aster fetch you something to eat and we can talk. I'm afraid I only eat pastries. Will that do?"

"Your Ladyship," Sonic bowed, "I cannot be picky in your presence. Pastries are fine."

After some pastries had been fetched for Sonic, Cosmo had finished her own breakfast, and the two were sitting comfortably, the Princess looked to her companion, sitting with his knees to his chest atop the dome, soaking up the rays of the sun from the beautiful summer day.

"I should like to see the east," she said.

"It's cold there. It snows nearly all year round." Sonic replied. "The air even _tastes_ of snow, when a storm isn't around. They make this treat called Flavored Ice out of _real _snow! It's pretty good."

"It sounds like it!" Cosmo exclaimed. "I'd like to try it!"

"As Princess, you could probably get it." Sonic responded, winking. "I can be there and back in a couple of hours."

"Really? You travel faster than my late father's airplanes!"

Sonic rested his head on his knees. "Yeah. Usually, it would take me two days to get to the east from here, but…I can rush. I travel more for leisure than anything else."

"Perhaps I will send you out to get some for me! But I have a question first."

"Go ahead." Sonic tightened his shoe straps.

"Do you follow Doctor Eggman? I've seen a lot of newspaper clippings that depict you defeating him."

"Eh…" Sonic squinted. "Yes and no. It's hard for me to tell if I follow Eggman or Eggman follows me, but either way we cross paths occasionally. And I stop him."

"All right. That's enough question and answer. Can you get me that Frozen Ice?"

"Flavored Ice. And can I refuse?" Sonic jumped down until he was perched like a cat on the fence around the deck. "Back in a few hours, my Princess." And with a bow, he was gone in a flash of blue wind.

Cosmo called to Aster to clear away the table and retired inside to her own room to wait for Sonic. Presently, a great commotion came from the first level of the palace. At first, she thought it was the servants' children getting into trouble and paid no mind to it. However, she was forced to when Buttercup and Blossom, purple and pink Seedrians looking identical to their sister otherwise, burst in.

"Princess!" They cried, quite out of breath. "The palace is under siege!"

_Midday, 5 June 2020_

"So glad to see you again, Princess. I hope your temporary lodgings were to your liking?"

Cosmo, tied to a chair, watched the evil Doctor pacing to no end in front of the largest computer she had ever seen with as much distaste and hatred as her twelve-year-old body could hold. "Sonic will stop you!" She growled.

"He may, he may not." Doctor Eggman continued to pace, staring at intervals at the computer and the floor below him. "That all depends on his timing. Which is usually annoyingly punctual. How pleasant for you." He smiled sardonically at her. "Mind, he won't rescue you until I get what I came here for."

"I know what you want!" Cosmo cried desperately, determined to be defiant to the end. "You'll never get it! Never! I don't even have it with me!"

"Liar!" Eggman growled, pounding his fist on his computer. "You _will_ give it to me! _**NOW**_!" His eyes, behind the tiny circular glasses, seemed to glow bright red.

"_Never_." Cosmo was firm in her decision. Eggman knew he couldn't win.

"You'll regret ever saying that to me, Princess."

"WARNING!" The ship's computer bleeped. "WARNING! ALL SYSTEMS SHUTTING DOWN!"

"_WHAT?_" The Doctor bellowed. Cosmo, both relieved and afraid, realized she was not prepared for everything that meant.

"SYSTEMS FAILING! ALL PASSENGERS PREPARE FOR IMMINENT CRASH LANDING!"

"Oh no!" Cosmo sobbed. All she could think about was Sonic. _Why hadn't he been there to save her? _

_Why?_

_Why?_

Why indeed. As Sonic stood helplessly, watching the warship crash, he felt a sinking in his heart. A big empty hole began to tear itself in his chest. "_COSMO!_" He cried out as if in pain.

But it was too late.

He couldn't return to Soleana, he couldn't face his friends, he couldn't face _anyone_. There was only one thing left to do. He had to turn himself in as a murderer and hopefully be sentenced to death or life in prison. It didn't matter. There was no worth to his life now that someone had died under his watch.

As he came upon a clearing just outside of Soleana, the internal warning system which alerted him when danger was near went off in his head, but he chose to ignore it.

Sweet pain thus ended his world.

_We are what we are in this world. A hero is a hero._

_However,_

_When a hero becomes too confident and stupid, and a life is lost..._

_That is called putting all your eggs in one basket._


	4. I Die Chapter

**Watashi Wa Dai**

"_HOW __**DARE**__ THEY INSULT MY POWER!"_ _The demon half-god screamed, then calmed almost instantly. "I may not have to kill them all…yes, he'll do it for me. It's only a matter of time before his love gets the better of him. And he'll destroy them all." The demon half-god giggled, watching the festivities play out._

_This world was far from over._

_

* * *

_

_3 June 2020_

Shadow the Hedgehog, the ultimate lifeform, was staring blank-faced at the headline of today's paper. All around him, everyone was dressed in black, heading towards the funeral. People came from thousands of miles around just to see it.

They came to mourn, because everyone had their regrets. Shadow himself was trying to hold back his own emotions. Tears he had never before had to fight, he fought now with all his black heart.

"Pity, isn't it?" A mourner, one of thousands today, in a black top hat and a high-necked jacket—both which helped to obscure his face, had stopped for a moment to read the headline. His black gloved hands held the newspaper in front of his eyes, keeping Shadow from identifying him. "Pity the sun's out, too, eh, lad?" He chuckled. "Doesn't suit the day."

"Shut up," Shadow growled in his throat, clenching his fists. "_**SHUT UP!**_ I'll kill the sun! I'll kill anyone who defiles Sonic's grave! I'll kill everyone who ever brought him away from home! _**ALL OF THEM**__ WILL __**DIE**__!_" He sniffled, feeling hot tears in the corner of his eyes. The mourners were all at the service now, save for himself and the mysterious man.

The man chuckled, rustling his paper. "Could it be," he began, "you have so many regrets, so much anger…because you _loved_ him?"

Shadow turned in wrath. "How…how did you know that?"

The gentleman laughed manically, and Shadow saw a flash of eerie green eyes that looked like stone amongst the shadows hiding his identity. "Go ahead, Shadow!" The man shouted, still laughing as he turned and reached his arms to the sky, letting the newspaper fall into the streets. "Let them die! Kill them all! Show them what happens when they break your heart!" That last sentence was said most mockingly, and Shadow got his first glimpse of the face of his taunter.

It looked much like his own, except for the green eyes, and a muzzle with no lips with which to speak. This…man…had a look of madness about him.

"Maybe one day," the madman added, "you'll take your revenge…even on the one you love."

Shadow could no longer hide his tears, or his grief. "No…" He struggled with his emotions, so much that he didn't even notice when the gentleman he'd just been speaking to melted into an oil-like substance and crawled away. "_**NOOOO!"**_

Using the last of his power, Shadow performed an internal Chaos Blast, meant to destroy only himself. However, he underestimated his own power.

During the Blast, his inhibitor rings had been incinerated, causing the Blast to go off like a bomb.

Everything burned.

The front page of the newspaper blew up into the sky, quickly turning red from the flames:

_Sonic the Hedgehog Found Drowned in Soleana Canal_.

* * *

_Beware, my dears,_

_For I promise you,_

_My jests are far from over._


	5. Here Lies a Secret Chapter

**Koko Ni Aru Himitsu**

_So the same thing happens…_

_Again, and again…_

_And again._

_4 June, 2020_

My name is Rouge the Bat. It's not often I get to play detective for the Guardian Units of Nations, but I suppose it's only fair to tell you that I love doing it. Mostly because I get paid in millions of dollars worth of jewels, but that has more to do with my personality, and not with this situation.

Early this morning, I was contacted by my superior, who wishes to remain unnamed and whose wishes will be honored. My superior informed me of my new mission: To discover the cause and culprit of the mass homicide yesterday afternoon in the square at Soleana, a little nothing village somewhere up north.

From what I understand, they are a monarchy, ruled by nameless generations of Seedrians. The immediate to the throne, Princess Cosmo of Soleana, was killed tragically in the blast. The corpses have been sealed off for police examination. Though I'd like to take a look, I know better than to let my curiosity get the best of me.

I am currently riding on a train to the central station close to Soleana, where I will be escorted the rest of the way into the city by the sole survivor of this incident, a Mr. Sonic the Hedgehog, who's hometown is unknown. I hate being escorted by anyone anywhere, but I hope to gather insight from Sonic for my boss' interests, and to satisfy my selfish curiosity.

The train will arrive at seven PM standard time. Until it does arrive, I will be drinking my tea here and going over the evidence of the case.

The whole city of Soleana, approximately 2000 people, are presumed dead, and possibly many more who were in town to see the local Festival of the Sun Goddess—the Hikari No Megami Festival. I'll let the police take care of the body count for now.

Mr. Sonic, the sole survivor, apparently lost his friends in the tragedy. I don't wish to provoke wounds in him, but for my own sake, I _must_ know the truth!

_Seven O'clock PM, 4 June, 2020_

Sonic the Hedgehog greeted me at the station. He is a blue hedgehog in his late teens, very thin and very sickly looking, although this is probably due to the recent tragedy. He offers his arm to me and assures me we "aren't even a mile's walk" from Soleana, or the restaurant my superior agreed to sponsor us at. He asks me pleasantly how my trip was, but his smiles are like bittersweet chocolate, and his eyes show evidence of tears.

When we arrive at the restaurant, Sonic slips us to a booth in the back and we are served immediately by a blushing waitress. Since everyone in Soleana is dead, this is probably a chain restaurant, with outsiders to this land working in it. I'm told not many buildings were damaged too badly by the blast that killed everyone. I suspect a bombing as soon as I learn this from my superior, who thinks it nice to have a letter delivered to me by my waitress.

"What's the note say, Rouge?" He's not smiling anymore, and he looks as if he's about to throw up. He's ordered a drink I don't recognize—something alcoholic, I think—probably a Soleana specialty.

I haven't bothered to tell him I go by "Ms. Rouge" while I'm working. He's allowed me the familiarity, so I will mirror his heartfelt expression. For now. I clear my throat, almost nervously. "My superior thought it pleasant to tell me how everyone died."

"Hmph. I'm beginning to wonder if he isn't all smoke and mirrors."

I'm horrified and embarrassed by his joke. "I saw him this morning, I'll have you know! Smoke and mirrors, indeed!"

Our drinks are brought and he chuckles over his hot chocolate—I recognize the smell now, though it is tinted with vintage bernkastel. "Relax, Rouge. I was only kidding. Personally, I think it an insult to my character. You could've asked me yourself." He looks at me darkly over his cup. "That's why you're here, isn't it?" His voice doesn't seem his own in that moment, which throws me off my horse for a second.

I cough, regaining my balance. "Unfortunately, Mr. Sonic, I have indeed come to talk of tragedies."

"Even if you intend for me to call you 'miss,' I insist you continue to call me 'Sonic,' and 'Sonic' only. I'm not even eighteen, and the honorific makes me uncomfortable."

"Very well, Sonic. Shall we talk after dinner?'

"We shall talk during, of course, Ms. Rouge. I don't eat." He leans back in the booth, smiling like a vampire, his legs crossing under the table. I can feel the tip of his sneaker brush my leg by accident as he moves.

"You don't eat, eh?" I thought he'd looked sick! I thought for a moment about the possibility of vampirism existing in him…or if he had the capacity to kill all those people. "Is this a new hobby?"

His smile is gone, and his mouth forms a near-perfect line. Anything this mortal cannot be so precise! I watch his look turn into a glare as he narrows his eyes at me. "New it is. Abandon your ideas of vampirism and homicide! Face real tragedy as you see it before you! I _dare you_, 'Miss' Rouge, to stare tragedy _in the face_!"

He is no longer the Sonic that picked me up at the station. Whoever this is-demon, god, or alternate entity—this is not he. And how did he know what I was thinking?

"Very well. We'll talk over dinner." I keep my calm, and I watch his return. He sips guardedly at his drink.

"Mutual respect, Ms. Rouge. Ever heard of it?"

_Seven-ten PM, 4 June, 2020_

I look up from my overly-decorative pasta dish, only to find him watching—no, studying—me, as if I was a specimen in a lab.

"Does it taste good?" His voice is innocent, and his eyes are hungry. Who knows how many hours this poor soul has gone without food?

"Yes." I watch him back. He doesn't move from his relaxed position against the booth, holding his spiked hot chocolate cup in hand.

"If you don't mind me asking, can you describe the taste?"

"It's wheat pasta, which always tastes grainy to me."

"Mmm, but I like it, though. And the sauce? I smell sauce."

"It just tomato sauce with cheese." I shake my head slowly. He hasn't moved. "I answered your questions. Allow me to ask my own."

"Of course. Please go ahead."

"Can you confirm there was a bomb in Soleana on the day in question?"

"No."

I sighed. "There was evidence of a bomb…"

"It wasn't a bomb," Sonic responded. "It was a person."

"A person?"

"Pardon, I can be specific." He cleared his throat. "Shadow the Hedgehog, the Ultimate Lifeform."

"Shadow was a bomb?"

"No. He is—_was_—a living weapon."

"And?"

"He performed an internal Chaos Blast. It tore him apart, like a bomb, from the inside. However, he lost control of his power somehow and killed everyone." His voice is flat, emotionless, as are his eyes, glazed over as if he is blind.

"That explains how it looked like a bomb."

"Yes."

"And the deaths of so many."

"Yes."

"Do you know why?"

"No."

I sighed. "On the day in question, June 3, there was a body found floating in the canal, drowned. It was incorrectly tested and 'found' to be you. News hounds ate it up before it could be corrected. I can't tell you that was the reason Shadow killed everyone-"

"He didn't mean it, honest!"

"—but nonetheless, I need you to confirm this story. Heard of it?"

"I…I had heard about the fake story, yes."

"Do you think this has any connection whatsoever to the deaths?"

"No."

"Did Shadow…" I paused. He waited with inhuman serenity. "Did Shadow…_love_ you?"

I watched him swallow. "I…I don't know."

"Do you think it's a possibility?"

Sonic stood up. "I feel ill. I can't see you anymore tonight. Check, please."

"My supervisor is sponsoring this." I stood up, too. "I'd like to meet you tomorrow, in a field outside of Soleana."

"I know it."

"Good. Will you meet me there?"

He turned around and stared me straight in the face. In a voice so quiet that I had to strain to hear it, he replied: "_You_ will meet _me_ there. But I cannot promise I'll be alive when you get there." Then, he was gone with the wind, and I was armed only with what he had told me.

_5 June, 2020_

"This is no good! No good at all!" Sonic cried to the sun in the middle of the field. "Damn you, bastard son-of-a-god, show yourself! How many times will you kill me in this field?"

"Many more times, you idiot." The voice which had haunted the boy's worse nightmares materialized out of this air. "But I'll let Iblis stay cold in your body for a while until that detective finds your corpse." Sonic's eyes widened, and the voice giggled. "What fun _that_ will be! It ends _her_ life as well!"

"No! Don't! You-" But Sonic was dead before he could finish, and his killer had gone. Sonic hadn't seen his face.

Again.

_Afternoon, 5 June, 2020_

"Sonic!" I rushed over to the body, turned it over with my gloves. A horrid vertical gash in his chest, right over the heart, erupted blood. The cut traveled through the chest plate and into his back, just to the left of his back quills. Both ends were bleeding yet, even though he was long dead, his body cold as ice.

I stood, furiously wiping tears from my eyes.

My last informant was dead. And now, the world was over.

_Here lies a secret, I'll tell you where to look._

_Shh, don't tell! It's only for us two._

_I'll tell you where I've hid the key,_

_If you reveal to me,_

_The secret which has made me hate you._


	6. Shadow the Demon Chapter

**Shado Akuma**

"_No-! They were kissing…__**KISSING**__! No, no…it can't…it won't—I…"_

_A dark voice inside him chanted, cackled…_

"_Kiiiiiihll them…kihll them all…"_

"_Yes," he said. "I will."_

_3 June 2020_

"Sonic, stay down."

"Ungh…where am I?"

Sonic was slowly—reluctantly—coming to in a room surrounded by warm, chocolate brown walls. A coarse blanket was wrapped around him, and a warm soft bed lay beneath him. He ached…why? He needed to remember…

"What happened?"

A pink thing appeared in his vision. Amy, no doubt. "Sonic, we found you half-drowned in a canal in Soleana. _You_ tell _us_ what happened."

"I—I…" Sonic couldn't think, couldn't remember why he'd appeared in Soleana, why he was half-drowned…and all this didn't explain why he ached. "I…I'm hurtin…"

"I imagine that was because you were bashed around by boats and things while in the canal," Tails, ever the scientist, explained. "You're covered in bruises."

Sonic lifted his hand to rub and massage his forehead. He'd had a dream about a bat-girl, and spiked hot chocolate, and pasta, and…death. And a white hedgehog. Suddenly, he needed them out of the room. "Tails…" he moaned. "I need an aspirin…"

"Of course, Sonic. I'm goin."

"I'll get you some food, Sonic." Amy, not to be outdone, bless her, rose to leave also.

As soon as Sonic was sure he was alone, he rose unsteadily to a sitting position on the bed, continuing to massage his temple as he located his shoes and slipped his numb feet into them. It wouldn't take long for Tails to return. He had to find that white hedgehog.

Somehow, Sonic felt that the dream hedgehog was important. He _had_ to find him—at any cost.

Minutes later, Sonic was on the road to Soleana. His friends would return only a second after his own leaving to find him gone.

And the bed still warm.

_Midnight, 4 June 2020_

Sonic was really feeling the ache in his body right now. All those bruises were bugging him to no end. Was he forced to suffer a fate he didn't even remember?

He was so tired and ill that he could barely walk now without pins driving into the arch of his foot, the side of his forehead, the pit of his stomach, and everywhere else in between. His body was telling him to stop and rest, but his drive insisted to his body that he needed to go on.

At least now he was in Soleana. That was Part One of his mission. Now for Part Two. Where _was_ that white hedgehog?

"Hi, there."

Sonic turned around. A white hedgehog with a tall crown of quills on his head and two more like pigtails behind him with black boots and a strange blue symbol on his white gloves, accompanied by a purple cat with an elegant jacket of similar color to her fur and high heeled boots with white fur trim, were standing before him.

An electric wave rushed through Sonic faster than he himself could travel. His dreams told him nothing of a purple cat (who seemed quite ill-tempered, by the look of it), but this was definitely the white hedgehog he had seen. Regardless, he tried to keep calm and hide his surprise.

"Are you lost?" The silver hedgehog spoke with such innocence and sugary sweetness that it made Sonic want to trust him immediately, though he didn't know his alliance. "I can help you find your way."

"It looks like he's in pain, Silver." The purple cat addressed the white hedgehog in a low whisper. "He's a traveler, no doubt."

"I wonder if he's mute?" Silver responded to the cat, scratching his chin thoughtfully. Then, to Sonic, he smiled. "Would you like to come with us? We have an apartment here in the city. You can stay in our spare room."

"We don't have a 'spare room'," The purple cat hissed, but Silver paid her no mind.

"Don't listen to Blaze," he thumbed the cat. "She's just upset cause she's not a big fan of water. You can come with us, regardless."

Sonic debated this. He needed Silver's help somehow, and if this was the fastest way, so be it. He nodded, trying to smile sincerely through the pain.

"All right." Silver grinned. "Come on, then." And he effortlessly lifted Sonic, bridal style, into his arms. Sonic winced as his wounds were touched and instinctively grabbed hold of the white hedgehog who carried his injured body towards the apartment.

As he listened to Silver and Blaze talk, he found himself unwillingly falling into fantasies. He realized that he held an affection for Silver which could not be erased no matter how hard he tried. And it grew the more he heard his voice. A giggle almost rose to his lips, and he was quick to swallow it back down before they reached Silver's apartment.

_Two-Thirty AM, 4 June 2020_

"Put him down on the couch, Silver. You've carried him far enough."

Silver weaved his way through the door and kicked it with his boot. The young hedgehog he held wasn't at all heavy, though he didn't look more than a little underweight. By the look of him, he was probably only three years older than himself.

His partner and best friend Blaze the Cat, a Princess in her own dimension and now almost fifteen (while silver himself had quite a ways to go before he could even hope to see fifteen), was sour-tempered most of the time, even outside of Soleana. She considered herself superior to everyone, probably because of her station, and was civil only to those who recognized her royal birth. As for being in this dimension, the reason for that remained unknown.

Silver gave a sigh. "He's weak as anything, Blaze. I think he'd benefit from some hot tea."

Blaze nodded. "Sure, offer your bed, your hide, your tea…"

"Blaze!" But Silver, reluctant, obeyed her and put the young hedgehog on the couch. He stirred upon leaving Silver's grasp and quickly settled into a sitting position. Silver fetched a hot wet washcloth and began to wash the helpless creature. "We couldn't have just left him to drown! The poor thing would surely stumble into a canal when the lamps were turned down!"

"Your heart's too big, Silv." Blaze sighed heavily as she entered with some hot porridge and a cup of tea. "But, oddly, I respect that. If you find him worthy of your time, I approve." She smiled warmly at Silver, and even paid a glance of affection to their guest.

Silver smiled warmly. "Thanks, Blaze."

Blaze waved. "I'm off to bed. Don't forget to get some sleep yourself."

"Aye aye," Silver responded, before concentrating on his work. Suddenly, he looked up into the stranger's pretty green eyes, his own of amber color shining in the dim light of the overhead lamp.

"I'm going to be honest, stranger. I don't think you're a mute, and I don't think you deserve to starve like a common peasant. I'm going to feed you some porridge until I get a vocal response from you. And I want your name as soon as possible." And he turned his back to prepare the porridge.

While he was stirring it, however, a new voice entered the scene.

"My name's Sonic. Sonic the Hedgehog."

Silver jumped in surprise, nearly spilling the hot porridge all over his lap. He turned back towards the hedgehog, a look of utter surprise on his face. "I _knew_ you could speak!" He whispered in triumph. "Would you care for some porridge or tea?"

"No porridge, thanks. I lost my appetite long ago. I'll take the tea, though, if you don't mind." The blue hedgehog called Sonic smiled a little, resting his elbows on his knees. Silver handed him the tea, and he nodded in thanks, taking a sip. "Mmmm. Plum tea."

"Yes. It's my favorite." Silver replied, smiling inwardly. Blaze hadn't chosen to sacrifice her own favorite Earl Grey to the stranger, it seemed.

"It's good. I prefer hot chocolate, though." Sonic smiled wider, leaning back into the couch now. "You have a nice place here."

"It's only temporary, and most of this doesn't belong to us. Thanks anyway, though."

Silence. Silver watched Sonic drink his tea, and also observed the stranger's wild green eyes, studying him as well. After a moment, Silver rung his hands.

"Won't you try a little porridge? For me? I'll feel better if you have a little food in you. You don't look well."

Sonic sat back, shocked. "I wasn't aware I looked sick! I assure you, I feel fine." At Silver's pleading look, he resigned. "But I will try a spoonful for you." Silver smiled, victorious.

The white hedgehog scooped the silver spoon deep into the middle of the warm, mushy porridge and fished out a heaping spoonful of the warm food. Sonic obediently opened his mouth and the spoon went in. Sonic closed his lips over the porridge and closed his eyes in a warmed ecstasy as he swallowed.

"Mmm," he mused. "That's not fair. It tastes delicious! And I haven't eaten in…who knows how long?"

"I guessed you were a traveler. How were you injured?" Silver went to scoop more porridge. Sonic accepted the spoonful, and the next, with increased reluctance.

"I was told by my friends that they found me half-drowned in the canals here. I traveled back here from up north to, uh…" He accepted the spoonful only to give himself time to think. He was here to get answers, not to eat. "To see the city. It's not half bad, despite the stench."

"Yes. I admire the architecture on the palace. Please have another spoonful. You're irresistibly cute when you eat." At that comment, they both flushed and backed up a little. "Sorry," Silver injected quickly. "I've been gay for a while, so…but I didn't mean to say it! Sorry."

"No, it's okay. I'm beginning to think I'm gay, too." Sonic responded thoughtfully. "To please you, I'll have one more spoonful, and then I'll have to stop. I'm starting to feel a bit ill."

"Fair enough." Silver, still blushing, offered him one more spoonful, which the other male took, and set the bowl—still more than halfway full—aside, rising to sit beside his companion. "What makes you think you're gay?"

Sonic looked bashfully towards Silver. "This is going to sound really weird," he said shyly. "But…I think I love you."

_Three AM, 4 June 2020_

By this time, both boys had lost any sense they had before getting into bed together.

They were not having sex—no, not yet—but it seemed that at any second they might. The only reason they dared not was Sonic's injuries and Silver's innocence. So for these dumb reasons, they refused to go beyond groping and feeling and making out to no end, pushing against each other lustfully, afraid to go further but wanting it badly anyway. They twisted and turned with each other under the sheets, and without any sex at all, a pact was made between them.

It was a pact of everlasting love and respect for the other, and hopes that someday, the relationship might reach its top.

Long after Silver had gone to sleep, tired from his bed-wrestling with a being quite strong despite his pain, Sonic stared at the moonlight, sighing as Silver innocently sucked his nipple in the night, wondering if this is why he'd had this dream.

Sonic never knew he could feel such pleasure without plunging his penis into something. And, he thought, he would never feel this happy again in his life.

No, not ever.

_Early Morning, 4 June 2020_

Shadow the Hedgehog was making his semi-weekly rounds when he heard the giggling of two young lovers in a nearby clearing. He leered, curious. He liked watching guy-on-guy sex, which he figured was an odd but secret perversion. And from the way those guys were going at it, he was not to be denied if he watched.

Ready for a show, Shadow pushed aside the ferns blocking his view.

What he saw shocked him.

Sonic the Hedgehog was wrestling and kissing _with another male hedgehog_! This one was younger than Sonic, maybe by three years, with playful amber eyes and a handsome young body…and quite the fluffy chest. This creature was adorable—almost as adorable as Sonic was to him—but burning jealousy made Shadow feel nothing but hate for this creature.

About to throw up violently, he ran away from the scene before the lovers went further and retched up an extreme amount of vomit. When he was finished dispelling his load, Shadow punched the ground and began to cry.

"Why? What does that kid got that I don't?" He stood up, pacing. "Why…? They were kissing! _**KISSING**_! I can't believe it! It can't be true!" He was sobbing horribly now, punching trees and shrubs and kicking boulders and rocks and anything he could find, really. "I'll kill him!" He shouted.

"_Why stop at killing him?"_ An inner voice hissed. _"Why not vow to kill them all? Especially the one who spurned your affections? Hmm?"_

Shadow, mad with grief, listened intently to the inner voice. A smile of madness crossed his lips. "Yes. _Yes_."

And right then and there, it was decided upon. The kid, and everyone else, was going to die.

_Ten O'clock, 4 June 2020_

Blaze couldn't believe it, yet she had watched it being done.

First, this black hedgehog had jumped Silver and choked him to death, then defiled his corpse by separating the neck from the body and sending blood and guts every direction intended, all the while shouting about 'Sonic.'

Blaze guessed the blue hedgehog was this 'Sonic.' Poor Silver. She wanted to cry, but she was too angry. She could only think about the brilliant young mechanic she'd met in town today; a fox with two tails—what a find! His eyes were blue…just like the coat on the one who had started all this! "Damn!" Blaze hissed to herself. "I'll kill that damn blue hedgehog."

Something else alerted her attention as she was turning to go. More voices and more violent killings. Two lovers, who died hand in hand—a red echidna and a pink hedgehog—now lay side by side-identical holes piercing their chests.

It was the fox that now attracted her attention. A golden fox with bright blue eyes and two tails. Blaze adored that little fox—yes, she'd fallen in love with a younger man! She couldn't deny it. But…what was he doing? Talking to that black monster, calling him "Shadow." Blaze growled. "Shadow."

Suddenly, her love was killed by a green spear that had appeared in Shadow's hand. Her love fell to the ground.

And in that moment, Blaze was pushed to the limit.

"_**NOOOO!**_"

_In the shadows, demons lurk._

_In the Shadow, a demon lives._

_The Shadow, a demon is._


	7. For You Chapter

**Anata No Tame Ni**

Shadow heard the scream, and his attention diverted from the corpses a moment. He knew he had just killed the white hedgehog, Knuckles, Tails, and Amy, but at this point he didn't care. He looked around curiously to see where the voice could be coming from.

Suddenly, a purple cat jumped him from high in a tree. "You killed Silver!" She screamed. "You _killed_ _**HIM**_!" She pointed at the body of the young Tails.

"I ended him quickly," Shadow chuckled darkly, his eyes wild with madness. "He should know better than to get in my way." He smirked.

"_LIES_!" The cat's hand became aflame. Shadow felt it lighting his coat. The warmth…was he being burned?

The flames did indeed engulf him, but death was nothing new to him. Tears he could not cry waited in his eyes. "Sonic…" he whispered. "I'm sorry…"

Blaze was fulfilled. She had killed the one who had killed Silver and her love. Now, to go after Sonic. She watched the corpse burning, the flames dancing a great relief and satisfaction to her.

"Sonic!" She cried out. "On a battlefield stained with blood, come face me! _I DARE YOU_!" She laughed, her arms becoming stiff. "Come to your death!"

A breeze came up around her, and Sonic appeared. There was no gleam in his eyes, and his form was thin and sickly and little. He seemed a different hedgehog than before. Blaze sized him up, her smile growing wider and madder.

"So, the story changes again." This voice of his…it _wasn't_ his. It was older and more experienced. It was eerily calm. "You are the murderer of this vision?"

"_Shut up_!" Blaze growled, her hands instantly aflame. "_You're_ the murderer! _You _killed Silver! _You _killed them!" She gestured towards the dead bodies of Amy and Knuckles. Sonic looked at them for a moment, his eyes glazed and dull.

"They are ended before the world," he whispered. "Is it enough… Is it enough, Mu Enka1?" He was saddened by this, but wearied at the prospect. "Is it not enough?"

Blaze's fire grew more, angered by the fact that he was not affected as she was by the deaths before him. His mumbling only confused her, only made her furious. He was mad, she supposed—better to end him now, rather than later.

"I," she giggled madly, trying to get his attention. It worked; he looked. "I—_I_, _I_ killed this black thing here! Shadow, Shadow! Shadow is burnt!" She laughed, kicking the burnt corpse with the tip of her boot.

"Kage ga yakete shimau," Sonic murmured. "Is this not enough?"

Blaze rushed at him, her hands on fire, pushing him back several steps. Sonic grit his teeth and put his wrists over hers. His gloves caught on fire immediately, burning his hands beneath. Her hands made burnt marks in his shoulders, and he squealed as the fire spread across his fur. Blaze was deliberately commanding the fire to burn him slowly, making it all the more agonizing. Sonic wailed, bending at the knees as he burned, crying ash.

"_Ah_!" Sonic cried, closing his eyes as the fire burned his skull. "Mu Enka! Devil! Is it not enough that they all suffer?"

"And my love!" sobbed Blaze, pointing at the corpse of Tails the Fox. "Killed! Killed before he can see his teenage years!" She was crying so much now that her fire burned and flared.

"Mu Enka!" Sonic cried. He watched a whirlpool overcome Blaze, drowning her like a wave engulfs a child at the beach. The whirlpool, dark and purple swirling in color, dragged her under, her sobs haunting him to the end.

His end came quite quickly. The last thing he remembered was a pain in his chest, adding to the feeling of burning flames.

_For you, and for you alone_

_I suffered and I died._

_For you, for you alone,_

_I cried and cried and cried._

_The ashes could not be formed_

_You were twice too late._

1 "Smokeless Fire" in Japanese


	8. Love Chapter

**Ai**

_We understand relationships so little in this modern world. We either understand them precious too little or dangerously too much._

_Knuckles and Amy were thrown together in the arms of fate. When Knuckles leaped to protect her from Shadow's rage, Amy forgot her love for Sonic, finding she loved him less and less like a boyfriend and more like a sibling, and attached herself to Knuckles, so that they died in each other's arms. After that, they became increasingly more attached, even going so far as sleeping in the same bed! But why? They didn't know themselves._

_It was love._

_Shadow and Silver both loved Sonic. Shadow's love for Sonic caused him to kill himself, and millions of other people across two worlds. Silver gave of himself freely and without being forced to, and Sonic fell in love with him. Through this love triangle, Silver and Shadow would come to have a sort of rivalry and affection—though it was a strange sort of affection—for each other, while Sonic was indifferent, distant, unloving, foreboding, cold. Their love for him-and for each other-never waivered._

_It was hope._

_Blaze fell in love with Tails. When Tails was tragically killed by Shadow, Blaze defended him by killing Shadow, restoring his honor. If Tails had been alive to see it, he would've fallen in love with her, as she had with him, and they were forced together, intertwined by fate. Their love was rocky, as they were four years apart, but Tails kept the relationship alive somehow, and that pulled them together time and time again._

_It was faith._

_Knuckles and Amy, Tails and Blaze, Shadow and Silver. All love. But there was hope in Silver and Shadow, that Sonic might become more open, more loving, once again. There was Tails' faith in happiness—in his dear brother—that kept Blaze happy and their relationship together. Knuckles and Amy had no special ties, other than…well…pure, true love._

_So, then, was love imperfect for me? Where was I to fit in this equation? And how? Why could my love not be perfect, simple? I, like these six, was tossed into a relationship by fate._

_But, I chose not to fall in love._

_I chose to fight._


	9. Foretelling Chapter

**Yoso**

Sonic was floating through an endless void of blackness. Around him, he could see things. He saw deaths, he saw Soleana, he saw different things he remembered but had dismissed as dreams.

Something walked beside him, behind him, far in front of him, watching his every move. A dull-eyed hedgehog of cobalt hue, staring at him blankly, drinking hot chocolate spiked with vintage bernkastel.

Watching, waiting…

For what?

And that was the question of this ghostly world.

_The date was not kept track of before. My apologies._

_Now, it will be kept track of. For prosperity._

_Current World, 5 June, 2020_

Sonic sat in a hotel room, sobbing his eyes out. He had seen the worst thing ever, and he had no idea where to begin with it all. He had to carry on, carry himself from this room.

He dragged himself into the streets outside, and watched the flames burning, the children crying, the dogs running. The flames spread all the way to the palace. Sonic watched as the royal barge carried Cosmo on her final journey.

He watched the police coming, doing a body count. The firemen put out the flames. Even humans gathered around. All was still and quiet—and yet a deafening noise he couldn't recognize or hear pained his eardrums incessantly as he watched the world go by, yearning to belong but at the same time only half in existence.

_Location Unknown, Time and Date relative_

"They're going to die."

It was like waking up from a dream, or coming out of a trance. "They're going to die. All of them."

"Yes. Yes they are."

Sonic touched the hand of the hedgehog who looked like him, as if he were standing in a mirror. They looked almost the same now—both slender and weak and sick from the strain of their travels. But…

"How did you know they were going to die?"

He chuckled, as if that was the most foolish question in the world. His voice was almost monotone, and sounded either bored or grave. "How did _you_ know?"

"I was told." Sonic frowned, drawing his hand away. The other hedgehog who looked like him mimicked him.

"You're inside me, aren't you?"

"A brilliant deduction, and you are correct, Wakai Baka."

"Stop calling me useless names."

"That means 'young fool,' which you are. Young fool." He smiled, but it was an eerie, sad smile.

"You were in my world."

"Yes. I am."

"And you met someone…"

"Rouge."

"Who are you?"

"I am Cadeyrn, the Battle King."

Sonic grinned. "Okay, Katie."

Cadeyrn heaved a sigh.

_Current World, 5 June 2020_

Sonic watched the world passing by at supersonic speed. He saw that Shadow had blown himself up out of misery for his lost love. And, tragically, he saw his own dead body, spurting blood out of his chest and back.

The scars of an eternal war.

And Sonic began to understand, as the world went up in flames.

He began to understand…everything.

_Location Unknown, Time and Date Relative_

"Katie," Sonic mused. "What's that shadow on your chest?"

Cadeyrn pushed apart his chest fur with his palms. There was a dark void cut there—a vertical scratch, a hole—cut neatly in the center of his chest plate. Sonic reached out to touch it, and found there was a breeze coming from it. He poked his finger inside it, and felt the internal organs and the perfect fracture of the bone.

"Whoa…" He squeaked, amazed. "It goes all the way…"

"Yes," Cadeyrn replied, nodding. "It goes all the way to my back, and through it, just beneath my back quills."

"I don't have that."

"No."

"Does it hurt? I'm poking it." He wiggled his finger inside the wound, to see if it would bleed.

It didn't.

"No," but Cadeyrn still flinched. "It will bleed, occasionally, but no, it doesn't hurt unless it bleeds. If you had it, it would hurt."

"It…" Sonic stopped himself. "This killed me, didn't it?"

Cadeyrn laughed. "Decide that for yourself."

_Current World, 5 June, 2020_

"I died." Sonic said.

_Location Unknown, Time and Date Relative_

"I died." Sonic said.

"Yes. You died. This," Cadeyrn pointed at his wound, "killed you every time."

Sonic sighed. "I guess so."

"Come on, then. You're tired," Cadeyrn rested his hand on Sonic's shoulder, and hugged him to his chest. "Sleep now. Rest. I can feel how weak you are." Cadeyrn touched Sonic's lips with his own, and slowly pulled into a passionate kiss. Sonic relented to it, and soon collapsed. Cadeyrn lay his double down on a bed that appeared out of nowhere, and stared gloomily and intelligently at the world floating by around him.

"What's next, my dear?" He asked the darkness. "What's next…Iblis?"

_And I'm tired, so tired,_

_I'm tired of this._

_I'm tired, so tired,_

_This foretelling—we do this._


	10. Olden Times Ending

**Olden Times: Ending**

_To get my happiness, I had done everything…_

…_but had done nothing to be blamed and accused of._

_The sound of footsteps became louder every day._

_Then I noticed the fact there was no time._

_I was a believer in life, to be myself always._

_And was asking whether I would be alive._

_Give me a reason why not to adopt in this way._

_Or judge me to be guilt of so many incurable sins._

_Tell me why or why not? Complaining way too much._

_Maybe I overlooked something fatal for me._


	11. Questions

**Questions About Harinezumi Mukashi**

_Any questions (that are not important to the other arcs) will be answered here, so if you have a question, please feel free to ask! I just have some things that I thought might make it easier on you to understand._

_Harinezumi No Naku Koro Ni is based off of Higurashi No Naku Koro Ni, or When the Cicadas Cry (When They Cry series). The basic idea of Higurashi was supposed to be a murder mystery sort of thing, where one person was the killer, two people died in the same way every time, Rika Furude is sometimes killed violently, and the rest varies from world to world. The second season, Kai, is all about the other characters realizing their faults and beginning the fight against fate. Rei is…nonsense. XD_

According to Google Translate (where I'm getting my Japanese from),_ "When the Hedgehogs Cry" _is_ "_Toki ni harinezumi ga naku," but to match the When They Cry series, I just changed it to Harinezumi No Naku Koro Ni.

The only question I have gotten from reviewers so far is "will it continue?"

Yes it will.

Sonic's alter ego (whom you will probably recognize as the "Sonic-but-not-Sonic" who talked to Rouge in Here Lies a Secret,) is named Cadeyrn, which means "battle king" in Gaelic ( believe…it's Irish.) I chose this name, in part, because of the meaning, but also because of this:

Bernkastel (which is also some sort of wine) is Rika Furude's alter ego. Her full name is Frederika Bernkastel, but usually she is just called Bernkastel, or Bern. The letter "r" and the letter "b" are sixteen letters apart. Sixteen letters away from the letter "s" is the letter "c". So there you have it.

Any other questions may be submitted through reviews or PMs. I will try to make a weekly habit of this.

Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed the ride!

-pantedgieQueen13 and Cadeyrn


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